Breaking taboos and saving the planet one period at a time đż
Menstruation is one of the most natural and healthy parts of life but talking about menstrual cycles and (everything it entitles) is considered
taboo and is really, really rare. Periods arenât your usual dinner party conversation. For many people they're not even discussed within
the family. Even at schools the conversation is not quite as transparent as it could be. The fact that there are many euphemisms for menstruation
does not help at all. Not talking about periods means itâs difficult to discuss all the issues openly and honestly.
So let's say it loud and clear: we need to talk about periods, period.
The Bloody Issue
A woman will first began menstruating at age 12 and stop at menopause, which starts around 52 years old. The amount of years a woman needs
these products will be estimated to be 40 years per woman. That means the average woman will used around 12,000 to 16,000
disposable products during her lifetime. That is equivalent to 125 to 150 kg worth of rubbish. As well as their contribution to
plastic pollution, a year's worth of a typical menstrual product impacts on climate too, with a carbon footprint of 5.3kg CO2 equivalent.
All available options for feminine hygine products can be divided into 2 categories: disposable and
non-disposable. The most popular disposable products are pads and tampons, while the most
common non-disposable or reusable products are menstrual cups, period underwear and cloth pads. Other than the length
of their life cycle, the main different between both groups are the selling price. Disposable feminine hygiene products
tend to be priced at a fraction of the cost of the non-disposable products; making them more easily available to the
general population (and that's including the
Pink Tax!â).
Technically, used pads and tampons are classified as biohazard waste since they contain blood but they rarely are disposed as such. That's the reason
why pads and tampons arenât recyclable, because they are considered medical waste. In addition, legislation in many countries insists on individual
wrapping for pads and tampons for sanitary reasons, making it difficult to go plastic-free even if you choose to purchase tampons without applicators.
And, while some companies do offer paper packaging and paper applicators for tampons, choosing paper over plastic is really just swapping one
problem for another.
There are different type of disposals options for pads and tampons:
- Disposal in the open
- Flushing
- Disposing in a bin with the general rubbish
- Burying them in the ground
- Burning them
- Using special disposal bin
The most commmon method for disposal is a rubbish bin like the one you can find in your home. An estimated 20 billion applicators
end up in North American landfills every year. Just like plastic bags, forks, straws, coffee stirrers, soda bottles and the most food packaging,
disposable feminine hygiene products are single-use plastics, and they contribute significantly to the pollution problem. Pads and tampons will
take around 800 years to biodegrade for pads and 100 years for tampons. By the time a tampon decomposes the woman that used it
will be most likely death. But her tampons will live on. If the ill-fated Queen of England, Catherine of Aragon, had worn modern-day sanitary
pads 500 years ago, they would still be sitting in a landfill or floating in the ocean.
Flushing pads and tampons down the toilet causes sewer blockages. Worse, many pads and tampons end up in the sea and
washed up on beaches. It has been estimated that 1.5â2 billion menstrual items are flushed down Britainâs toilets each
year. The great majority of these products end up incinerated or in landfill. Figures from the Marine Conservation
Society reveal that on average, 4.8 pieces of menstrual waste are found per 100 metres of beach cleaned. For every 100m
of beach, that amounts to 4 pads, panty-liners and backing strips, along with at least one tampon and applicator.
According to a study by the European Commission, discarded menstrual products are the fifth most common plastic waste
product found in the ocean. Big brand sanitary napkins consist of up to 90% plasticâthe equivalent of four plastic
bags and, because they are made of polyethylene and other plastics, they arenât biodegradable.
The Other Kind of Nasty
Most pads and tampons currently in the market contain cotton or rayon, polyester, LDPE and many substances that are
considered toxic for the human body such as fragances, phtalates, dioxins and petrochemical additives.
Womenâs Voices for the Earth commissioned an analysis in 2014 of various Always pads and found they contained traces of
"styrene (a human carcinogen), chloromethane (a reproductive toxicant), chloroethane (a carcinogen), chloroform (a
carcinogen, reproductive toxicant, and neurotoxin), and acetone (an irritant).â
The fact that the cheapest options are often those with the most potential to damage our health and the planet makes this
a social and environmental justice issue: people with the least power have the greatest exposure to dangerous products.
Your Guide to a Sustainable Period
Non-disposable menstrual products have been around for decades, but they've been left in the shadows by their plastic
disposable counterparts. In recent years, companies have been creating category innovations and created modern, discreet and eco-friendly
alternatives to the options we have known all our lives, and we are quite excited about the healthier and more
sustainable options! Switching to an eco-friendly menstrual product means you wonât contribute to overflowing the landfills with period
products; in the US alone 12 billion pads and 7 million tampons pollute landfills annually.
There are more non-disposable alterantives like menstrual cups, period underwear, and reusable cloth pads.
By this point you'll be wondering, what can we do to help? We've reviewed the 3 most commonly available non-disposable feminine hygiene products
so you can check them out and see which one works best for you:
Menstrual cups |
Period Underwear |
Cloth Pads |
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| Made out of surgical-grade sylicone, this beauty will be your best friend if you like hazzle-free period.
These menstrual cups are meant to replace regular tampons, but rather that absorbing your flow, they actually collect
it in the cup. This can be helpful for those who may need to monitor their cycle.
A menstrual cup can be worn for up to 12 hours at a time and needs to be periodically removed, emptied and cleaned. When silicone degrades over time, it reverts back to silica, which is a type of sand, and the second-most abundant material on Earth |
Using a state-of-the-art technology this underwear harnesses the power of bamboo and uses it to absord all types of flow, avoid leaks and odours
so you can go around with your life without the hazzles of the menstrual cups. They are washable, reusable and
come in different designs.
Bamboo, a relatively new fabric in the textile industry, is a more environmentally-sustainable alternative to cotton since it requires no fertilizer or pesticide use, needs very little water, is highly adaptable, has a remarkable growth rate, and doesnât disturb the soil to plant a new crop. |
This is the oldest reusable method around: it is what our grandmothers used when they had their periods (a very outdated
version of these). Cloth pads are free from irritating synthetics and chemical gels found in conventional disposables. You can find
them in all shapes, sizes, and colours. The natural materials are biodegradable and compostable at the end of
their life.
As with disposable single-use pads, you secure reusable pads to the crotch of your underwear, and they absorb menstrual fluid externally. So there isnât much of a learning curve there. |
| The lifespan of a menstrual cup is 10 years. | The lifespan of a period underwear is up to 5 years | The lifespan of a reusable cloth pad is 5 years. |
We know that was too much to absorb; but as as long as you are willing to deal with some trial and error and feel comfortable trying something unfamiliar, thereâs no major reason why you shouldnât give reusable feminine hygiene products a try. If you havenât already made the switch and youâre interested in trying out a less âplastic-yâ option every month, thereâs no shortage of options to choose from. You can feel good knowing that youâre taking care of your own body, as well as looking after the future of the planet. Go ahead, make the change, and outlive your menstrual products! đââïž.